do you have to make sure you are getting the apt at a discount so when you are able to refi you can pay it off?

Thanks, @Neal Collins, you're absolutely right: I'll need to do a lot of homework on the mortgages, taxes, potential fees etc. for any given property.Another big reason I'm doing this is that there are a lot of attractive reasons to go from having an external office for my business (which is currently the case) to having an in-home office that would be tax deductible and essentially give me a discount on my house payment.However, another consideration that I must be careful of is that with seller-financing, a seller can sell the house as-is with possibly a huge number of repairs/some deeply fundamental repair needed.

Buying way below market value and selling at a discount below market is typically the way it is done.  

I had discounted this option because I’d rather do the work myself and reap higher rewards, but the only way I see to get even better returns than turnkeys is with a BURR-like strategy.

I've invested in several deals with Nitya Capital in Houston in large apartment complexes and have learned tremendously. 

Some elect to take the highest possible cash by a listing, and other elect to take quick cash at a discounted price but avoiding commissions, marketing time, etc. 

They have done a good job with my clients, returning customers have also gotten discounts.

Also because our tax return is so time consuming he does give us a discount off of his total bill which even with the discount is expensive.In summary I recommend Miles but realize I am claiming up front that he is expensive - I suspect few tax men earn a higher hourly rate.Good luck

However in dollar terms that comes to an absolute amount of $15k which is quite a discount to listed price

There should be a discount to purchasing as a package.